Orphan School of Tough Learning
by Blackmoondragon1415
Summary: Orphans usually have to learn quickly in order to survive in the world, and a certain green lizard is no exception. Drabbles about Dragon's growing up and travels.
1. Chapter 1: Seeing

Disclaimer: I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

Why am I doing this? Better question is, why not, seeing as Dragon's past is one big barrel of possibilities to explore, especially from the scraps of what I've heard floating around.

Problem being, updates may be spotty, but seeing as this is a story/ drabble collection which I'm just going to follow and see where it leads, I don't think that will be too big of a problem. If I get any readers, great! Just be sure to leave a review, so I know if there are any issues with my set-up, or even if there is something you would like to see, let me know and I'll see if I can tackle it.

And, as a small note, I'm going to try to keep this mostly chronological, so Dragon will start out as a hatchling and work his way up to the boisterous reptile we all know him to be. Any bits that are out of place will be noted. Thank you all!

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><p>Seeing:<p>

There had been no one else in the cave, though there were all kinds of interesting smells all around when he gamboled through the back part of the stone antechamber that led to the outside. At first, he stayed away from the outside. It was too big, to bright, and occasionally, too loud. It frightened him, in a sense, the multitude a bit too overwhelming for his young mind to digest.

However, after a while, a strange feeling began to blossom in his stomach. He wanted something, but had no idea what it was he wanted. Maybe the answer was outside?

After a while of hanging between fear and hunger, the baby dragon stepped shakily out onto the outcrop of rock outside, ready to jump back to the safety of the cave if need be. But, while it was almost painfully bright, nothing tried to attack him, something that made him bolder. Stumbling to the edge, his eyes widened as they caught sight of the world spread out below him, with green and grey and blues all put together like some sort of vast painting. The baby dragon chirped, surveying the scene with the innocent wonder only a child could have. And with his eyes, he could see better than most other living things could from his perch.

It was almost as though he were some sort of sentinel, looking down on the rest of the world as they moved through their daily lives.


	2. Chapter 2: Exploring

A/N: I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

Yeah, I know I said there might be a bit of a wait, but I already had this done and had an opportunity and well...

Like I said before, suggestions will be welcome if anyone has any ideas.

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><p>Exploring:<p>

Despite occasionally going out of his cave, for food and to enjoy the view, it had not occurred to him to ever leave his mountain home. He had what he needed, green food, water that trickled down a section of the rock wall, and the wonderful standpoint from which to look down on the world. There was no desire to head elsewhere.

At least, not until the strange two-legged creature had ascended the rocky slopes, coming up to his cave. It sat outside, looking about at the slope, the sky, and then him, when he accidentally shifted and loosened a few stray pebbles. The two-legged looked at him with something close to awe before taking out a flat thing that smelled…strange. Recognizing the emotion, but still peeved at the other creature for intruding, he did not protest as loud as he could have. Nor did he slash or bite, something that had scared the loud-feathery-flapping things that had landed on his ledge earlier that morning.

The sun had sunk a bit in the sky before the two-legged left, with a strange bounce in its step. Though the incident was put out of the hatchling's mind when he settled down for the evening, eyes too tired to even look at the stars.

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><p>That's all folks. Reviews will be greatly appreciated!<p> 


	3. Chapter 3: Flying

Disclaimer: I do not own Jane and the Dragon.

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><p>Flying:<p>

While the various plants around the ledge had been able to support the hatchling fine in the past, with his growth came more hunger, and the green food he was so reliant on started to fade with the constant picking. Not to mention the loud-feathery-winged things kept stealing bits before he could chase them off, his vocal protests loud and indignant enough to wake the dead. However, while the hatchling had not appreciated the thinning of his food supply, he did notice something about the feathery things. When they escaped from his reach, they took off into the sky and then swooped down the mountain, where below there lay a sea of green. That must be quite a lot of food.

Seeing as the hatchling had wings of his own, he felt opted to try his luck. Eventually, he wound up taking small hops, moving further and further away from the cave as he went. And, once he had somewhat mastered the art of taking off, he took a bit of a leap of faith. At first, the winds buffeted his small form, keeping him aloft, and allowing a smooth glide down the face of the mountain. He was just over the sea of green now, but he did not want to come down, the sensation of nothing between him and the sky near-intoxicating. However, with the euphoria and the quickness with which he was beating his wings, he soon ended up over the ocean, and the sudden coolness in the air stole the updrafts he was riding. Before he could figure out what was happening, he was dropping, wings flapping frantically in an effort to regain the control he had had mere moments ago. However, it was all for naught as he plunged straight into the blue expanse below. Out of instinct, his legs moved, pushing him through the water. Though, given that he was a little turned around from his fall, it took him a little while to reach the surface. When he did, the hatchling coughed, choking on his newfound air. Seeing a streak of green land out of the corner of his eye, the small dragon swam for it, relieved to finally touch ground, and later, dry soil.

He curled up on the shore, exhausted and frightened, shivering a few moments before the excitement got the better of him and his eyes closed.

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><p>As many great writers have said before, reviews are greatly appreciated. ^^<p> 


	4. Chapter 4: Meeting

A/N: Believe it or not, this event is actually canon. Or so a website centered around the show says. Jane and the Dragon: Royal Archives. In particular, a page titled 'My Magnificient Life', which is pretty much a diary-like account of Dragon's life. However, it...hasn't been updated. For a while...which was part of what inspired me to do this in the first place. Anyhow, enjoy! Questions about what's happening will be answered in review responses, if it's not clear in the actual chapter.

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><p>Meeting:<p>

The next time the little dragon awoke, he was not lying on the ground, on the shore, but in a strange cave of some kind. Everything smelled different, and the only thing stranger was what he could see outside. Quite frankly, he had never seen anything like this place before, but it looked as though the place was made of trees. There was also a little star in a ball casting light about the tree-cave, making long and slightly intimidating shadows on the wall, though the little dragon stiffened his resolve and tried to remain unnerved. Though, that did not mean that he did not jump when a part of the tree-cave wall suddenly opened, admitting a rough-looking two-legged who ambled about the room for a moment before sitting on one of the strange wood formations, and doing something that the reptile strained to see.

After a few moments, the two-legged stopped and turned around, looking at the child for the first time since he entered the room. In surprise, the dragon stumbled back, taking on a rather unsteady defensive stance. Though, the human did not look too perturbed. If anything, he seemed to find it _funny_. Offended by the strange sounds coming from the two-legged's mouth and the condescending mood, the little dragon protested the treatment through squeaks and juvenile growls. In response, the human gave the child a different look, a challenging look, which he returned with a brazen stare of his own.

Whatever this two-legged was going to do with him, the reptile was certainly not about to give him any help, that much was certain.


	5. Chapter 5: Learning

Disclaimer: I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

I apologize to everyone about the lateness, though I'm trying to get back into the habit of working on this. I'll try to update again as soon as possible.

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><p>Learning:<p>

At first, the dragon was not sure if the rocking he could feel was from the cave itself or his own nerves. After all, it did not seem like he would be getting out of here anytime soon. The two-legged had only come back to sit on that tree-rock, and on occasion, count strange shimmering rocks, which he would always put back in a brown pouch before he left the tree-cave. Though, on some times when the child took it to be night [the little star seemed brighter in its ball], he would find the two-legged staring at him as though considering a particularly puzzling object.

However, the time in the little box was not without its perks. The two-legged fed him often, making sure that he did not starve, and when he seemed to pick up on the little dragon's tastes, he made sure that it was to his liking. He also saw more than just the one two-legged, who would do some sort of strange back-and-forth with other humans, and eventually, the child could pick up on generally what was going on during these exchanges. The tall-skinny-black-haired one was often the one that his captor would be angry with, and the pudgy-looking light-haired human was the one that his would talk in pleased tones with. And, after a while, the sounds started to form into words. The little golden stones were called 'coins', or 'money', and what he always sat on was called a 'chair', the one he would do things on was a 'table'. The thing that the dragon himself was in was called a 'cage', and the place that they were in was referred to as a 'ship', whatever that meant [it was honestly a little frustrating to keep hearing this term and not know what it looked like]. Nonetheless, the word that fascinated him the most was the one they had for the little star. It was called a 'flame', 'fire', or a 'light'. Although, it also irritated him. Why have so many names for the same thing? Didn't these two-leggeds ever get confused?

Though, for the life of him, the hatchling could not wrap his own green snout around the sounds. However, his desire to mimic was more out of the want to do it too, rather than display it to the two-leggeds. He had a feeling that it wouldn't go over well. So the small reptile played quiet, merely surveying the world outside of his little section of the tree-cave.


	6. Chapter 6: Parroting

A/N: I do not own Jane and the Dragon

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><p>Parroting:<p>

"Pretty birdie, pretty birdie! Want a cracker! Pretty birdie want a cracker!"

The hatchling stifled a whine, pressing both of his front paws over his ears as he tried to block out the constant chatter. Ever since the two-legged had brought in the little irritating ball of feathers [in its own dome-shaped box], the thing had been talking nonstop, and about the same thing! Crackers, and that he was a pretty birdie, which was a complete lie, as he was the ugliest combination of neon yellow and bright green. At the very least, the hatchling's colors were softer, and not as glaring as those of the bird.

Not to mention it's _voice_…as grating as the tones of grinding rocks, and horribly shrill to the point where the little dragon had roared in a juvenile squeak in annoyance more than once. It hadn't done anything to shut it up though, and the squawks and repetitive words continued.

After a few minutes of agitation, the hatchling started to pace the minuscule length of his cage, trying to burn off the irritated energy accumulated by merely _listening_ to the inane chatter of the bird. However, after a few minutes of movement and no change, another idea began to occur to the child. Perhaps if he _gave_ the bird what he wanted, then he would shut up. Looking around at the spot that was looser than the rest of the door, he noticed a large piece that seemed to be holding it closed, smelling of bad hard-rock and a strange sharp tang. However, this was easily fixed, by a good wallop with his tail. When the part broke, the little box opened effortlessly.

The hatchling had heard the word crackers at least once before, enough to know what it meant. The two-legged kept a bag of the roundish little things on his 'table', even though he rarely gave any to the bird. While it took a moment to actually get a 'cracker' out of the bag [why on earth did two-leggeds make things so difficult?], the hatchling eventually did spill open the sack, and grabbed at least five of the things in his mouth before trundling across the table to the parrot's cage. The bird tilted its head, but otherwise kept right on up with talking. Resisting the urge to let out his trademark squeak, the little reptile completed the small trek, and roughly shoved the crackers in between the bars.

The reaction was instantaneous, and explosive. The bird let out a loud screech, which sent the hatchling tumbling off the table in surprise with an equally loud squeal. Feathers flew from the cage as the parrot spasmed in outrage, continuing to squawk for a bit until the racket finally died down. Pulling himself up from his sprawl on the floor, the hatchling backed up to see the inside of the bird's cage. The parrot appeared to have drawn in on himself, beak facing the back of the container, and, thankfully, away from him. He might have taken a moment to relax from the excitement, but the distinct sound of an approaching two-legged [his captor, no doubt] made him realize that he was probably not supposed to be outside of his tree-cave. Scrambling for the familiar box, the hatchling practically threw himself inside, whipping the little hard-rock-thing across the room with his tail and pulling the door shut with his teeth.

Nearly a moment after he had situated himself, the door opened, and the two-legged that his captor liked to make loud noises at stood there, looking around the room at the mess caused when the hatchling fell off the table. Though, quite frankly, the young dragon did not see the point of his distress. It was just a few of the strange white square leaves that had been knocked to the floor. However, in his hurry to get the cabin cleaned, the two-legged didn't notice the distinct lack of the hard-rock on the dragon's tree-cave.

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><p>This was another one that was part of the archives of the JatD website. After this, it'll pretty much be my own ideas or suggestions from the readers from here on out.<p> 


	7. Chapter 7: Escaping

A/N: I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

Well, plot movement! And I said this would be up right away, didn't I? I am so so sorry, schedules are very difficult things for me to keep. Still, the near short story length of this could have had something to do with that.

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><p>Escaping:<p>

The hatchling hadn't really tried to take too much advantage of his newfound freedom, though when the two-legged wasn't there, he would often just nudge the tree-cave open, just to prove to himself that he could. After a period of time, however, he found himself growing curious. What was this thing that the two-leggeds called a ship, and all of these other words and sounds that did not make much sense to his ears? Where was his old cave?

At some point, he decided to make a habit of pushing his way out of his tree-cave, going a little further and further every time, and generally exploring the room [also giving the scrawny two-legged more trouble, whether he knew it or not]. He would have tried going farther, doing what the two-leggeds did and pushing the part of the wall that opened, but whenever he tried, something would happen. The parrot would start squawking, the sounds of something coming would become louder than he was comfortable with, and he would be forced to scurry back to the safety of his tree-cave before someone either came in or was drawn by the noise.

However, this time was a bit different. For starters, the parrot had been carried out by his captor a while ago, and neither had come back yet. The child had grown bored, and hungry, so, with one good nudge against the barred wall of the tree-cave, he pushed his way out into the room, crossing the distance between him and the moving-wall and nudging_ that _open with his shoulder. Slinking out completely, the hatchling almost jumped when the moving wall closed sharply behind him.

However, while he had been gung-ho to get this far, he was now unsure as to where he should go. The dragon had come out onto an open area, the sky, big and blue, stretched out over him, with the sounds of movement and talking coming from somewhere to his left. They were awfully far away though, and didn't sound as though they were coming any closer, so he paid them hardly any mind.

Then a strange smell caught his nose, wafting up to him from somewhere down below. A little ways away, there was another moving wall, though this time it was on the ground. Edging closer, drawn more by his nose than his curiosity, the little dragon peeked over the side of the opening, catching sight of a two-legged bustling about a smoking…thing of some kind. That was also where the appetizing smell seemed to be coming from, and his stomach immediately told him that it was more than merely okay to eat. Waiting until the portly two-legged had moved away, the small reptile tried to lower himself down without accidentally falling. However, it was harder than it looked, and about three feet away, the hatchling lost his footing and landed directly on the 'table' below with a muffled squeak of dismay. Albeit, when he pulled himself right-side-up again and looked to see how close the source of the tantalizing smell was now, he wholeheartedly agreed with himself that it was the best mistake that he had made. Pulling himself up so that he could balance on his hind legs, the little dragon's talons gripped the sides of the pot as he tried to edge his head in to lap at the wonderful-smelling stew inside. Managing to splash more of it on his face, rather than getting it into his mouth, the hatchling savored the taste for a moment right before-.

"_**OI!**_"

-Nearly tumbling off his perch in surprise when something bellowed, rather loudly, from right behind him. Twisting around, the dragon's golden eyes widened as he caught sight of a hulking two-legged, face turning a funny-looking red color as his arms waved wildly. Squeaking in surprise as the incensed two-legged ran at him, the child dove from the table, instinctively opening his wings to glide to the floor. However, while the much larger creature had to take more time to correct his charge, he was by no means stopped. The young dragon ran as fast as his four legs could carry him, pushing through a small hole in the wall and ending up in a larger cave. He didn't have very much time to gawk, as he was nearly hit with a section of moving-wall as the two-legged behemoth crashed through it, roaring in fury as he caught sight of his quarry. Seeing an incline a few feet away, the small reptile dashed toward it, and squeaked loudly as his head hit a hard slab of…something blocking the opening. He knew there was an opening there, he could feel a small draft of air working his way across his face, but he couldn't push it open.

But, the dragon had forgotten one very important thing. While he couldn't open the hatch, the loud and extremely angry two-legged behind him definitely could. And in the dim light, his pursuer was having a difficult time seeing where his prey was. Which may have been the reason that, somewhere between the span of that moment and the next, the hatchling was blinking blearily in the sudden blast of bright sunshine, and grabbing onto the first thing he could in his newfound fright. Which happened to be the strange thing that the angry red two-legged was wearing on his head.

Both squealed and bellowed [respectively] as they realized their new predicament, and the small reptile instinctively sunk his claws in as he was shaken about, the two-legged all but thrashing under his scaly cargo. The hatchling, for his part, squealed in terror and hung on with all the strength he could put into his small claws. However, no amount of might that the small dragon possessed could keep him on when the two-legged forcefully grabbed him, and tore him from his perch. With a loud holler, the two-legged threw him forcefully to the deck, the hatchling recovering quickly and springing to his feet, running for a gap in the wooden wall that lay to the side. Before he could outright see where to he was about to jump, he sprung from the ground, gliding his way down to a thankfully stable outcropping, not unlike the one that jutted out from the cave that he used to live in. The hatchling hit the ground running, going under square-wooden-rocks, two-leggeds, among other things. He didn't stop until he could no longer hear the sounds of shouting, or smell that peculiar scent that the two-leggeds had. By this time, the sun had started to sink below the tree-line, and the little dragon felt tiredness pull at his eyelids. Settling down in the shelter of a large tree, the small reptile curled up, quietly letting sleep overtake him.

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><p>I'm not going to lie, I went a little crazy with this. Though, for all intents and purposes, it sure was fun.<p> 


	8. Chapter 8: Mooing

A/N: Insert your favorite disclaimer here.

Here's the debut of the moo-makers! I thought there should probably be a somewhat memorable experience for this, and this chapter was what I came up with. Let me know what you think!

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><p>Mooing:<p>

The next morning brought rain, something that shocked the hatchling into standing with a loud squeal at the sudden downpour, and a jumbled bunch of nondescript protests at the sky. Though, when the rain got substantially more violent with a bright flash [something that he was not sure was possible], and a loud booming echoed throughout the heavens, the hatchling quickly scrambled off into the bushes, though the family of small brown furry things that were already there were not too happy about the new arrival. Breaking out of the greenery, the small reptile tore through a few more thickets before slipping on the slick ground and going tumbling down into a plant full of small-sharp-points, something that he tore his way out of with a loud squeak. While it did not hurt quite as much as it would if he had skin instead of scales, it still made him itch something fierce. Groaning lightly as he tried to rub the feeling off on a nearby tree [and the downpour was still going strong, making the bark wet]. However, the next flash-boom that ripped across the sky made him stop with a yelp, and he looked for a place to wait out the weather.

However, where he eventually ended up staying was a tree-cave, though much, much bigger than what he had been in on the 'ship'. There were also other creatures in here, he could smell them all over the place. On the walls, on the floor, though the smell on the floor was different then what was on the walls, something that didn't quite make very much sense to him. Though, what the hatchling did find, a patch of some strange, soft strands that made a very good sleeping-spot when piled together like they were. However, he had barely lain down to rest when suddenly something seized his tail and dragged him towards the other side of the pile, which he valiantly resisted by trying to dig in his claws and letting out an indignant squeak as he was dragged out to come face to face with-.

Well, in all honesty, he wasn't sure what it was. He had never seen such a creature before, with fur, big floppy ears, and large brown eyes. The other animal had obviously never seen anything like him before either, as he was quickly dropped with a loud _sound_. As he crashed into the ground, he heard more of it, echoes coming from other spots in the tree-cave. Looking around, he watched with a semi-amused air as the other creature made it's strange sound again as it backed into the corner of its little open-box, the others calling back in the same, strange, lowing cry. It was actually comforting, to tell the truth, and the child felt his eyelids drop as he settled into the hay with a deep, sleepy sigh.


	9. Chapter 9: Evicting

Disclaimer: I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

**[Thunder cracks over an old, deserted cemetary as rain pours down from the sky, turning the hard ground into a muddy slurry. On the far side of the graves is one tombstone that looks rather new compared to the others. When looking closer, one finds that it reads 'Here Lies Blackmoondragon1415, Another Student Who Met Her Untimely End Via The Torturous Exams'. However, something does not seem entirely right about this grave, as the soft ground in front of the stone appears to be moving...no, wait, it _is_ moving! Out of the ground pops a grimy hand, reaching jerkily towards the sky as the rest of the body follows. Shaking globs of mud out of her hair, Blackmoondragon1415 stands out against the lightning-streaked sky, looking around at her surroundings for a moment before tramping for the cemetary gate. Making a beeline through the town [and accidentally frightening a few unlucky bystanders along the way], she eventually comes up on an old house, which when the door is pushed open, lets loose a small green dragon that immediately tackles the authoress to the ground, squealing and chirping in an indignant/joyous manner. **

**"Yes, yes, I know. I didn't forget you." She mutters, patting the hatchling's head in a pacifying gesture as she picks him up, heading for the lone computer flickering upstairs, on which is a partially written chapter. **

**"Well, at least this was mostly done by the time I was ...incapacitated."**

**The irritable look of the small dragon is all the incentive she needs.**

**-_Submit-_]**

Yeah, one word. Exams. Scourge of the creative motivation. Hope the little treat was alright, this is the first time I've done something like this. Besides, the idea actually was kind of fun.

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><p>Evicting:<p>

It was the sound of a loud, shrill call that woke the little dragon, and he squirmed and whined as he tied to sink back into the embrace of sleep. However, the noise continued, growing more thunderous and harsh until it was practically over his head. At this, the young reptile lost his already short patience, and he burst out from under the hay with a juvenile roar, completely startling the young maid that had come in to milk the cows. The word that the two-legged used perplexed the little dragon, as he was sure that he both did not understand it, and wasn't certain if this applied to him. Either way, the strange branch that the female swung at his head pretty much said that she wanted him out of here, his condition and agreement debatable in the matter.

Shrieking his own head off in fright, the reptile vacated the pile, nearly getting whacked with the funny stick a couple of times when the hysterical two-legged managed to get close. Thankfully, the maid had left the door of the tree-cave open, and the reptile became a green dart as he streaked out, heading for the safety of the nearby forest. The stick-crazy two-legged had thankfully not followed, though it was still a while before he calmed down enough to stop for more than a second or two. He had noticed several appetizing groups of green food standing out among the tall 'legs' of the trees, easily tearing off leaves and gobbling them down with a few satisfied squeaks.

It was then that he started to think about what he had heard the night before. What sort of animals were those? He had never really heard anything make sounds like that. It was such a fascinating thing that drove his young mind in circles. Either way, it was definitely considered a pleasant sound, given that it had been the one good thing to happen during that utterly crazy day.


	10. Chapter 10: Watching

Disclaimer: I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

Yeah, this does not make up for the long silence, and I thought I would be more available over this summer, but there are certain things going on that are getting in the way of writing and updating on a regular basis [if what I was doing before was regular updating]. Firstly, I have managed to land some employment for the summer, which eats up a lot of my time. Secondly, my trusty laptop's been having issues with it's cooling fan [it makes a whole lot of noise and the computer heats up to the point where I could cook an egg on the keyboard]. All in all, this is either going to end up with servicing [which I'm not so sure I want to do, as this computer is over three years old and probably will need increased maintenance to run properly], or getting something new [which is always cool, and I'm up for doing a bit of shopping when it comes to new tech]. Either way, while I'm not going to be gone from , this will most likely put some serious crimps in updating. Which is why I'm giving you this crappy piece in an offering of peace. Please don't kill me...I really don't think it'd be worth the trouble...

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><p>Watching:<p>

If there was anything to be said for this green world, while the caves may not have been in abundance, the small feathery things certainly were. There was currently a whole group of them in the open area of the clearing. The hatchling watched, unconsciously settling down into a crouch in order to remain unnoticed. For the most part, the feathery creatures paid him no mind, most unaware, others moved away once they saw the reptile.

Nonetheless, a great deal of the birds were quite close, and the hatchling felt a strange urge start to worm it's way into his mind. Mock-roaring, the reptile made a charge for the avian group, a giddy, gleeful squeak blurting out through the growling when they all squawked and panicked, practically mowing each other down for a break to the air. The frantic scramble, not to mention the feathers, dirt, and grass that flew high into the air, made the hatchling collapse into giggling squeaks. And, the featherbrained animals that they were, they settled down not too far from the amused lizard, almost begging to be spooked again.

And spook them he did, though this time, he unknowingly incorporated a part of his own instinct into the chase, partially following them into the air before he came down with a skidding slide on the dirt, chirping and squeaking with glee. It was the best game he had ever played.


	11. Chapter 11: Changing

Disclaimer: I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

Yeah, I am so late and have next to no excuses. And this, well, just doesn't seem to make up for it in my eyes, so hopefully, I'll have something new soon. Very soon, hopefully. Though I figured I ought to address the fact that time is passing with this short piece.

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><p>Changing:<p>

His new game, 'Chase', had gotten to be a little more difficult as of late. For starters, the months had brought on a rather prominent growth spurt; the hatchling had growth in length, as well as a bit height wise. He could now reach some of the lower-hanging green food on the tree-legs, though it did not taste nearly as good as the ones on the smaller clumps.

There had been other changes as well. His juvenile squeaks had deepened slightly into a more growling level of noise, though they hadn't quite gotten to be the mature, intimidating roars that they would possibly become later on. Though none of this was thought about or would have made much sense to the reptile at the time. All he knew was that it was interfering with his usually fun game. He'd had to crouch lower, and be even quieter than he would have ordinary to even have a hope of getting close to the birds. However, eventually he found himself able to transverse small distances without giving his location away. However, he still had the darned habit of stepping on twigs. After which he'd had to freeze and hope his natural coloring helped him remain hidden enough to continue. That was one thing that had stayed the same, something the reptile was happy for. He wasn't certain what he would have done if his color changed into something like, say, the neon green that the loud parrot had had. Not only would it have made hiding that much more difficult, he might have tried to scratch his scales off if that had happened.

And speaking of scratching, the reptile felt a tremble work its way through his shoulder blades. Right in that _hard to reach_ spot-!

Spurred into action by the itch, the not-so-small dragon leapt out of his hiding place, rolling on the ground to rid himself of the irritating tingling. He was somewhat gratified to see, once he had stopped, that he had succeeded in scaring all of the honking-flapping creatures out of the clearing.


	12. Chapter 12: Soaring

Disclaimer: I don't own Jane and the Dragon

Believe it or not, the inspiration for getting my behind in gear and working on this addition came from Dragon's World: A Legend Made Real. Look it up. I believe you can find it on Youtube.

Also, there's a little question I want to ask of my reviewers. Can I do a sort of behind the scenes companion to this [as in not really related to the story, more controlled playing-with-characters sort of thing], featuring some of my own draconian creations in companion to the little green hellion, I mean, adorable creature contrived here? After all, with my stretches of inactivity,_ someone_ has to keep an eye on the little guy. [There may also be some cameos, as I do have a few ideas of what can be done with this.] I will also continue updating this as often as time allows, as it's the actual work and I've gotten so much great feedback. Course, if it doesn't sound good, I'll drop it for the moment. Just leave your answer with your review, please.

And now, our story.

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><p>Soaring:<p>

He was watching the loud, feathery creatures again, but this time, a game wasn't quite the only thing on his mind. The dragon had been thinking about their wings, all feathery and flappy, as they were, and his own. His were devoid of feathers, but certainly they could hold up his weight in the air, right?

Granted, he hadn't quite been able to achieve the same lift that he had had before he had grown, but surely it was still doable. Taking a preparative breath, the reptile settled himself at the end of one of the many clearings in this forest [though, for the sake of practice, this one was larger than the last few he had tried]. Crouching down, he glared at the taunting blue sky as though it had done him a personal wrong. With a great running start and a leap, the reptile jumped into the air, wings flapping furiously as they tried to hold up his weight.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem that the wind was on his side, and he came down in a heap. Grunting and rolling over so that he was on his back, the child stared up at the sky, that elusive thing that seemed so close, and yet so far beyond his reach. He remembered that feeling, that swooping, _soaring_, top-of-the-world sort of feeling that he had experienced back when he was smaller. The feathery things were mocking him now with it, circling above his head and well out of his reach. Almost snarling his own frustration, the demi-dragon rolled to his feet to try the stunt again before-.

A low noise from his midsection interrupted. A plaintive calling for food that he had managed to ignore up until this moment. Sparing the maddening creatures above one more glare, the reptile turned to the bountiful growth of the nearby bushes. He had come to like these particular plants, but had only been able to track some down in the wetter parts of the forest. They were tasty, and filling, the dragon falling asleep in the shade with a full stomach within moments of finishing.

The sun had ascended to its midpoint in the sky before he awoke from his nap, smelling the new creature before he saw it. A two-legged. Here, in his part of the forest. While he had remembered the two-leggeds, and retained most of what he had learned on the ship [like the fact that he still hated parrots with a passion], he had figured that he had left them behind when he left the 'ship'. But when the burly, and very surprised two-legged suddenly crashed through the bushes, peering at him with no small amount of shock, he had to silently acknowledge the fact that what he thought had been quite wrong.

Though both were stunned, the reptile recovered first, quickly rising and darting off the other way, catching only the tail end of the creature's frightened cry at the sudden movement. Heart pounding, he crashed through the undergrowth, not bothering with stealth now. However, instead of growing faint, the smell of the two-legged followed him, practically licking at his heels. He didn't turn his head, too focused on taking a left there, and then trying to lose him around that tree there. But this one must have been nimbler than he looked, as he cleared most of the obstacles in moments.

In fact, he and his tag-along made it all the way to the clearing that the dragon had left not hours ago, but this time, there was a change. With the young lizard's heart pumping wildly, muscles tensed, and instinct firing in his brain, unlike the brazen impudence that had been driving before. He felt lighter, feet ready to lift off the ground. His wings, uncoordinated and flimsy, now felt strong enough to take him to the very stars he had watched as a hatchling. Ignoring the blundering of the two-legged behind him, the young dragon snapped his wings out, allowing them to catch the air before starting to beat, quickly, but with careful rhythm.

Nature taking hold, his wings eventually carried his feet two, no, now over the branches of the trees! His grunts and small growls burst out into one long, joyous call, sending the few feathery beings in the sky a-quake with fear; there was a dragon loose in the air.

But for him, all it was was the pleasant sensation of flight, the feeling of regaining a skill that had been thought lost.

And with that, he took to the east, leaving his pursuer on the ground behind.

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><p>Why am I suddenly hearing the opening lyrics to Heart of a Dragon by Dragonforce?<p>

Oh, well. Got other plot bunnies to get moving on, before they start piling up again. [shudders] Hardly need a repeat of last time...

That's all for now, folks!


	13. Chapter 13: Traveling

A/N: Well, I wonder if any of you are thinking 'what the heck took you so long to post', well, audience, there's actually a very good reason for that. For starters, I went back to school, and spent most of the first few weeks getting acclimated to everything. However, on Friday I woke up and realized that it was my birthday, and I had spent most of the month not even looking at my stories. Mean feat for me, of course, but seeing as this was my birthday weekend, I thought, why not?

So, I have worked a bit on the stuff for Orphan School of Tough Learning, and it's new sort-of-side story, Behind the Scenes. If you want to find it, just check my list, should be right under this one.

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><p>Traveling:<p>

He hadn't been sure of where to go, willing to take this newfound freedom anywhere, even to the sun itself if he wanted to. The world looked small, spread out underneath him like that; the trees, lakes, and hillsides were flying by without a care. However, at some point, back in the part of his mind that still operated on instinct, he knew he would have to stop and rest. Just not yet, maybe a few more minutes. Just another moment feeling like he was the top of the clouds. Not _yet_.

It was well after sunset, and he had transversed quite a bit of ground before he decided to settle down. Angry twinges were reverberating through his wings, and he more crashed than landed. After a few tumbles, and a loud crash that made him give an irritable growl/yelp in response, the dragon got to his feet, tiredly looking around at his surroundings for the first time. He was in a very strange forest, he had to give himself that, ringed in by more rocks than greenery. There was a scent about, prevalent, sticking to everything in a fine coating and hanging languidly in the air. The perpetrators of it must be gone, though coming through here often, from its strength, and the reptile sniffed blearily, trying to figure out where it was he'd smelled this particular scent. It couldn't have been too long ago, when was it…?

Suddenly, the answer hit him like a two-ton hammer and he froze, eyes wide and staring as his mind was jerked back to wakefulness by the tension running through it.

Two-leggeds. He had landed outside a den of two-leggeds.

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><p>Yeah, I do declare cliffhanger. The next chapter shall be relinquished once reviews have been amassed in my inbox.<p>

Yes, that was shameless, wasn't it?

Either way, I'll try to have the next up ASAP. Never fear!


	14. Chapter 14: Evading

Disclaimer: Same as it has been for the last thirteen chapters.

Oh, lordy did this take far too long. It only takes the end of a long vacation to make me realize that I had planned to do this, why?

No idea, but putting this here to help tie off that little cliffhanger in the last chapter. There will be more shenanigans, though it may be a while in coming as school just reared its ugly head.

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><p>Evading:<p>

For a moment, the reptile was caught firmly in the mental state between 'freeze' and 'run', eyes wide as he looked around, and actually recognizing the signs of two-legged inhabitance. Off to the side were strange, circular wooden trees[?], not unlike the strange tree-cave he had been kept in on the 'ship'. Not too far away, a wall of rocks and dirt sat, though there was something odd about it. For one, a hole was implanted right in the higher parts of it, just high enough that the small dragon couldn't see inside. Though, that wasn't what made him stop and stare at it. There was some sort of flickering light coming from inside, it looked oddly familiar, almost like-.

A human star, a flame, or whatever they called that thing here [far too many_ names_, these crazy two-leggeds!]! And where there was one of those, there would also be two-leggeds to manage it. The loud bang that followed a moment after that line of thought nearly had the reptile jumping out of his scales, and the rise of noise that followed [distinct noise with the pitch rapidly rising and falling not one long drawn-out sound like with any other animal] had the youngling darting behind the short circular trees for cover. Crouched, and trying not to be too tense, he waited until the sounds passed on before venturing out, poking his head out first before edging out the rest of the way. He'd have to get back to the green place, with all of the food. Or any place at this point, he was not willing to be picky. Sniffing at the air, he was rewarded when a familiar, if not highly pleasant smell hit his nose. The plants he had taken a liking to were around somewhere, quite close too from the strength of the scent. Sniffing inquisitively at the air, the child meandered his way carefully through the maze-like passages, hiding when a hint of foreign noise entered his ears. He might not have been as small as he used to be, but he was still small enough to take adequate refuge in the passages and crannies the place had to offer. His nose finally led him to a particularly large little tree trunk, and the little reptile nosed and nudged at the wood, giving an irritable grunt when it did not yield to his more passive efforts. Well, if _that_ would not make it give up the food inside…

Thinking for a moment, the reptile gave his tail a thoughtful look, and promptly turned around to give the older, softer wood a good wallop with his tail. After a few good smacks it gave way with a hearty crack, at which a small pile of slimy, green plants came tumbling out, which the dragon consumed with greedy abandon. However, he had unfortunately forgotten just how close these quarters were, not to mention how loud the noise of the wood breaking was.

It was only when he heard the steady thumping of footsteps did he realize his error, pausing in dragging out more of the wonderful plant to look up with nothing short of surprised shock. Thankfully, it only lasted for a moment, and the not-quite-so-small reptile dove for the shadows, trying to fit himself in behind some tiny trees next to the one he had broken open. And not a minute too soon, for within seconds of him ducking out of sight a large, monstrous two-legged came thundering down the way, stopping at the sight of the little broken tree.

The reptile would later be somewhat curious as to what all of those funny-sounding grunts, growls, and whoops coming out of the larger creature's mouth were.

However, he had some idea of what was happening when a trio of two-leggeds followed the noise, and the glow from their fire-on-sticks was making it rather difficult to remain in the shadows. In nervousness, he nibbled at the few leaves he had managed to snag before scooting away, cringing as the volume of the two-leggeds' noises grew louder and more incensed. Despite his steadily growing feeling that he should not have broken the little tree, a few more of the leaves he had grabbed disappeared into his maw. He couldn't hold onto them if he had to run, right?

Though his stomach felt….bubbly, almost like he had inhaled wind, and the reptile placed his front paws over his muzzle in an attempt to block in the air that desperately forced itself against his jaws. If he could just hold out for a few more seconds…

While the vocal tone had not diminished any, some agreement seemed to have been reached, the two-leggeds starting to move back down to the other end of the path, taking the broken tree with them. However, the feeling brewing in his gut seemed to only grow more and more tumultuous, until a loud belch forced its way past clamped jaws. Freezing as he suddenly realized how quiet it was in the wake of his little misstep, the reptile instinctively forced himself back further into the shadows, seeing with a cold snap that the two-leggeds had turned back around, staring in his direction. He would be discovered soon if he stayed here.

Giving in to the instinct that he had been suppressing the moment he had smelled food, the reptile outright bolted, bowling straight into a two-legged's long, gangly limbs and knocking him over in his attempts to escape. The younger one let out a loud howl, which the others all echoed as he used his precious time to run in the direction of where the forest-smell was coming from as though there were wolves nipping at his heels. However, the shock of seeing a reptile the size of a large dog come through and run down one of your family members certainly did not keep the group preoccupied for long, and soon the air was filled with the sound of chase nary a few moments later. The noise drew more and more people into the fray, with even more wilder stories emerging to explain exactly what was being pursued so feverishly. One mentioned some sort of ten-foot-high monster, and at least one person was certain that the beast on the loose was in fact some sort of flying snake.

But the monster, for all his frantic childishness, had managed to slip out of the humans' clutches in the mayhem, running deep into the safety of the forest and huddling himself down in the roots of an old oak tree.

It had undoubtedly been an interesting evening.


	15. Chapter 15: Watching

Welp, back again from the lands of oneshots and other fandoms, folks. Hopefully there will be plenty more where this came from. If you haven't already, check out the other two stories I've recently submitted, _Thassolophobia_ and _The Drunken Dragon_.

Just for reference, Dragon has technically been through the seasons a few times by this point, and his instincts make up for his lack of experience. Chances are, he would be staying close to home while the weather isn't up to par. Kind of ironic, given we're going through periods of heat and rain here.

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><p>Watching:<p>

While he never came too close again, he definitely was more than a little piqued by what he had seen in the place of two-leggeds. Trees that held food inside them rather than on little sticks on top? Not to mention the way they were packed in together, didn't they need more room? From the smell alone, there had to be lots and lots of two-leggeds in the little cluster of 'caves' he had been in. Maybe it was bigger on the inside, like his rock-hole-cave had been before he'd left.

However, if that wasn't the darndest thing, then the way they hooked up other four-leggeds to pieces of wood and metal to make them drag the entire thing through dirt was. He had watched this practice from the safety of the treeline until the wind changed, the horse catching his scent and panicking with a loud cry that sent him running for fear he would be discovered. But his curiosity would not allow him to really go too far. He would usually be back by the time the sun started to go down, because then something truly interesting happened in the dwellings of the two-leggeds. Just as the giant-star-light sank behind the trees, the little rock-and-earth caves of the two-leggeds started to glimmer with strange, flickering lights. Sometimes he could hear noises, like strange barking, calls, and chitters that carried on into the night, though often enough, he would fall asleep in the bushes as he listened. The reptile would be gone long before anyone even noticed he was there, and no one came to look in his hiding place. It was the perfect place to spy from.

This sort of routine went on for many changings of the silver orb, and eventually the weather chilled a bit with the coming of winter, or the cold-time as the young lizard internally referred to it as. The not-so-small dragon had been through a few winters before, so he merely went along with what his instincts told him; find a nice, safe, warm place and plenty of food. Yet he couldn't break his habit of looking at the two-leggeds, with their strange customs and odd little quirks that grabbed his curiosity, like the weird metal-wood things pulled by four-legged cloppers.

But he couldn't put off finding a safe place to stay forever, so he eventually started to dwindle down the number of visits. Eventually, he stood in his clump of vegetation and bushes on a chilly day as the leaves were nearly gone form the trees, watching the many two-leggeds go about their business in their gathering of dirt-tree-caves. Albeit, there was a particular scene that was drawing his eye; a two-legged child, swathed in brown furs, and his mother walking alongside him. The boy toddled ahead of his parent a bit, after something or other, when he suddenly fell flat on his face. His initial squawk was preceded by near deafening [for the reptile particularly] cries, which immediately made the mother draw to his sprawled form on the ground, sweeping it up into a hug as she balanced the baby on her hip, using a free hand to sweep the tuft of hair out of its face and clean up the dirt that had been smudged all over the child's cheeks.

Eventually, her ministrations managed to calm the boy, and he slowly calmed from cries to whimpers and finally to contented little murmurs as his mother gently spoke in soothing tones, her hands and words easing away the initial fear and hurt the lad had experienced at the little spill he had taken. They moved out of sight, though the image had stayed in the little dragon's mind, long after he had left and headed for his new home for the winter months. As he lay curled up in the darkness of the cave he imagined how it must have felt, the warm, caring touch, and the words there to ease away pains and fears, the thoughts eventually leading into a deep and contemplative sleep.

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><p>Alrighty then. There should definitely be more on the way, though please do let me know if you see anything wrong with this one, as this was a work done over a pretty long span of time. Unless you get a really good burst of inspiration [I can't really think of many other reasons to be up at 4 AM.], it can kind of feel a little stale to work on, as you're more joining old phrases and ideas together than really writing something out from the get-go.<p>

Until next time!


	16. Chapter 16: Sneaking

A/N: Sixteenth disclaimer, same as the first. Wow, we're really sixteen chapters in?

Alright, I know this one is short, but bear with me. Figured I could give you guys something as I start getting dragged in a few different directions by a couple of wildly sporadic plotbunnies and muses. Turns out that the summer season really is the best in terms of inspirational motivation, good news for you lot. :)

Enjoy!

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><p>Sneaking:<p>

Many moons, colds, and warms had passed since the reptile's little forays into the place of the two-leggeds. He had grown, about to the size of a thick-footed cloppy thing that he would see two-leggeds ride from time to time. This made it more difficult to hide, and sometimes to play chase with the strange honky-things, but part of him couldn't help but feel somewhat proud of the change in size. He'd like to see any two-leggeds try to chase him away again, that was for sure!

He still remained interested. Out of all the creatures he had seen, two-leggeds were the most confusing, and entertaining ones to look at. Every minute something new seemed to be happening. Though there was a time, over the years, that perplexed him most of all. It was when lots of cloppy-hoofs came pulling rolling tree-caves, and even more two-leggeds. These newcomers though were all different, from their color to their smell, or at least from what he could tell at this distance. Speaking of distances, his curiosity had brought him a little closer every time, and he was even more emboldened by the fact that not one of the two-leggeds seemed to notice his yearly advance. Perhaps he hadn't lost his touch at hiding and sneaking after all.

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><p>Alright, folks, how do you think this one's gonna go? Be honest.<p> 


	17. Chapter 17: Sticking

A/N: I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

BTW, anyone that's been asking about publishing and such, I'm doing a project on Fictionpress page [You should be able to get to it from my bio on my page. Any problems, PM me.] concerning some of my own ideas and works. Viewing isn't manditory, but I would really appreciate some critique. Thank you!

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><p>Sticking:<p>

He was close to surpassing his old record as he neared some brush that put him within smelling distance of a few moving-tree-caves on the edge of the group. These had had all sorts of interesting new scents and things to see, and his curiosity drew him in. Creeping quietly through the plants, he crouched low as he came closer behind, pleased to note that the two-leggeds had been drawn away by something or other. But it wouldn't last very long; he had seen them darting in and out of the tree-caves, mobile and otherwise, like flies. He was curious, but not enough to risk being discovered.

But there was something quite interesting sitting up on one of the shelves just inside the entrance, a strange golden colored thing that was just strange in all forms, though maybe he remembered something like it from that ship…

As he mentally attempted to work through where he might have seen something like this before, he tried to ease himself up through the opening without making too much noise, reaching out trying to get a grip around the funny thing with his teeth to carry it off.

It was so slippery though! Not even his teeth could get a decent grip without the smooth…thing, sliding around in his maw as he tried to ease it out of the window to drag it away. However, there was still the gap between the shelf and the door to think about, not that the reptile had remembered. At least, not until the jar was suddenly pulled down by a lack of table and an increase in gravity. It cracked the moment it hit the ground, the noise seeming louder in the careful silence he had been trying to maintain. Whatever was inside the smooth, clear thing was leaking onto the floor now, smelling strange, though not in a bad way. It was nothing like the leaves in the forests that had such great tastes to them, and it practically set his taste buds alight with how different it felt. It was sticky though, and quite gooey, making it hard for him to open his mouth without some sort of weird squelching noise. This, was not so good, and seeing as he wasn't certain of what was happening and couldn't see the exact state of his muzzle, this was more than a little disconcerting.

The reptile spun clumsily around, managing to ram straight into the sides of the entrance before actually making it out to the forest proper, tripping over a tree root or two and spitting at the taste of dirt that seemed to be magnetized to his mouth.

It took a long, long time to get the sticky gunk off his face, and even longer to get the taste of dirt out of his mouth.


	18. Chapter 18: Sheltering

A/N: You know this drill folks.

Oh, good lordy what am I still doing awake? Trying to get you guys a bunch of stuff before school officially kicks back in is what. I barely remember pounding out the last few bits, I just remember old Hanna Barbera Cartoons keeping me moderately entertained as I plunked away at the keyboard.

Also, before I forget, I would like the lot of you to stop by my Fictionpress page, link listed at the bottom of my bio. Why? Because there are new things up there I think you people would really like to see. Remember how everyone kept telling me that I should be writing professionally, or they would buy this from me if it were a book? Well here's your opportunity to support a writer and go comment and leave crit on a couple of chapters from one of my latest works! C'mon guys, do your civic and artistic duty and give a writer some feedback! The story, soon to be collection if I can manage it, is called the Spotlight series. Go give it some love. The power of I-need-feedback commands you.

*Ahem.*

And please enjoy this piece here. Chances are, given from what we've seen in the show, Dragon is going to end up in Africa at some point, probably the Savanna, but for now he's got to suffer through some European winters first.

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><p>Sheltering:<p>

The cold came on with a lot more fervor this year. The temperatures had dropped to downright freezing overnight, with his not-so furry limbs feeling nearly every cold breeze that made its way into his little hollow. Sometimes he contemplated sneaking into the nearby tree-caves of the two-leggeds, seeing as from the way they stayed in more often than not as the temperature dropped.

Curled up in a ball under some raggedy bushes, the reptile tried to huddle in as much as possible in an instinctive effort to keep himself warm. He had been watching the two-leggeds pack up their assets for the night, herding their four-leggeds and moo-makers into the huge tree caves and putting funny branches over the door. Catching sight of the practice, the dragon looked up, watching their motions and pulling himself partially to his feet as he kept careful attention of the two-leggeds movements as a plan started to form in his mind.

Once they had moved back into their tree-cave [an agonizingly freezing span of time later], he started to quietly creep his way through the plants and eventually onto the rough-hewn path that wagons and four-leggeds had carved into the earth. It felt painfully open and vulnerable, so the dragon skirted quickly across and through the bare branches of the odd-looking tree-bush-plants that ringed the four-leggeds' little stretch of green. They gave a terrible, loud creak when he forced his way through, making him stop and wait a moment in shivery, cold air as he waited to see if he had been discovered.

Fortunately no avenging two-leggeds or flocks of four-leggeds descended from on high, so he plodded on, using his by-now-nearly-numb limbs to creep through the grass and small brush as quietly as possible. It was a lot like the chase he had played with the geese when he was much younger, except now he suspected there was more at stake now than a bit of fun. It seemed to take much, much longer than it ought to have for him to reach the barricaded opening of the four-legged tree cave. Now came the challenging part.

The reptile sized up his foe, pretending not to notice when a cold blast of air whipped around the field, slamming into him with freezing accuracy and making his wings nearly vibrate with the effort to stay warm. All the more reason to hurry this up, he supposed, though he couldn't be too loud about it or the two-leggeds would come running. Nudging at the door for a moment he found that it would open slightly, but not anywhere near enough for him to squeeze through. So merely forcing it open was out of the question…

He then turned his attention to the branch, nudging it to the side and eventually so far off balance that it fell from its hooks. The resounding thud as it crashed to the ground made him jump and cringe, though from the few calls in the confines of the barn, it hadn't been loud enough to arouse any sort of suspicion, yet at any rate.

Emboldened and quickened by the seemingly dropping temperature, the green lizard nudged his way into the barn. And boy oh boy did he almost regret it when he did.

The fluffy white four-leggeds, upon seeing the intruder, set up a loud rancorous baaing in stereo due to the ten of them that were present. They didn't seem rather bright but the racket they were making was making him far too uncomfortable for his liking. Any more noise could bring the two-leggeds to see what the problem was. Darting past the pen, the not-so-small dragon spied a pile of hay at the far end of the barn. Moving far faster than he thought his numb limbs were capable, the reptile dove straight into the warm heap, burrowing down as far as he could until only the faintest hint of green could be seen in the brownish yellow. Still, some part of him could not relax until the baaing and lowing and neighing had finally died down, with blessed quiet taking up a very welcome residence throughout the barn.

That is, until a cow's lowing came from right over the weary yet wired dragon's head. Poking his head up just high enough that he was able to see, he first caught sight of the very familiar brown eyes and longish face staring down at him through a slat in the nearby pen. A moo-maker, it seemed, had gotten curious about the new tenant and wandered over. And, though the very reptilian face had made the creature draw back slightly at first, it inched closer again when she had noticed a lack of response. What was this utterly bizarre thing sitting in their hay?

The dragon, on his part, remained very still, too tense to move and unwilling to try. He allowed the cow to sniff at the top of his head, thick with the smell of plants, dirt, and the forest that he had been staying in. He almost did break that spell when the cow, finally encouraged by his scent and compliance, gave him a testing sort of nudge right on the top of the head with an almost greeting-ish sounding lowing. He was being…accepted?

Even with his surprise floating heavily in his brain, he practically rushed to answer, his own attempts at lowing coming out harsh and strange at first before, after a few tries, he managed to get it to something that at least sounded partially like what he had heard from these particular four-leggeds. He wasn't certain exactly how it had happened, but he eventually fell quietly asleep with what felt like a lick being swiped across his snout.

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><p>Also, I feel the need to point this out. What Dragon found himself getting into was a jar of honey from some traders that had come into the town he's currently in. Personally, my brain is saying somewhere in Spain or Portugal, though it's been known to be wrong before. He's definitely not in England at the moment, though.<p> 


	19. Chapter 19: Sneaking

A/N: [Sheepishly slinking back in here] Hey all. Guess when it rains it truly does pour. Initially, I had been planning to take a break just to finish up my second semester, with all of the finals and papers that come with, but things went places and I wound up taking summer courses and needing to concentrate on those. Then a part-time job that now is almost turning out to be more trouble than it's worth comes along with some mild technical issues and I get put off of writing for weeks at a time. At any rate, I've proofread this as much as I was able, but if there are any issues, inconsistencies, or errors that come in the rereading. This has been the product of multiple stops or starts over a period of months, so it's entirely possible that some bits don't quite match.

Also, there is another matter that I want to bring to the attention of anyone who's expressed a fondness for my work at large, especially given that over the years I have managed to accrue quite a bit of characters as well as stories from the weird creatively-swamped backwash that is my brain. Along with fanfictions, I do dabble in trying to get them down in a Word document from time to time, and been having success with some. I apologize in that not all of them do not directly involve dragons, but many of them do involve dragonish motifs or symbols, so it should keep a draconic story lover occupied and happy. The point I am somewhat long-windedly trying to get to is a part of the summer for me has been preoccupied with what would come after writing these stories. There's a surprising amount of options out there, from putting out manuscripts to publishers to trying to self-publish it on something like Amazon, but I haven't made a clear decision on much of anything yet. Another issue is would anyone bother to pick up my original works. Granted, I don't necessarily have a sample that I can shove in front of you to get your opinion, but judging on what you've read from my previous stories, whether it be from _Jane and the Dragon_ or any other fandom, would you be interested in reading any of my own ideas?

Be the answer yay or nay, just leave an addendum in your review. If you don't care, then just skip to the story.

Anyway then, folks, allons-y!

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><p>Sneaking:<p>

He had managed to slip out of the two-legged home as the sheep had started in with a new chorus of baaing. He just barely missed the two-legged that came in a little while later, seeing her walk up to the barn as he took cover among the trees bordering the human village. She barely seemed to notice, coming in and letting the lot of the four-leggeds loose out in the fenced in area of green. He had had quite the comfortable sleep, but the air was still nippy and made him shiver on occasion.

If there were only a way for him to get back inside the human structure as needed. The door was being fixed even tighter from what he could see from his refuge in the bushes.

That or he could try braving the elements, something that was not a welcome idea in the least, especially if things were going to get even colder. As he thought, the reptile made his way around the pasture, coming close to the fence as he came to the furthest point away from the four-legged wooden cave. As he tried to slink down as much as possible, unconsciously mimicking the traits he had learned while jumping geese, the green lizard suddenly noticed a familiar lowing coming from his right. Poking his head up, he sniffed the air curiously, and noticed a scent on the wind blowing his way. Turning his head, he jumped slightly at the sudden appearance of one of the four-legged, 'moo'-making creatures. Once he had gotten over his shock, the dragon noticed that his new visitor was the four-legged he had 'befriended' the night before. The brown, liquid eyes looked at the partially hidden lizard in askance, almost as though it were wondering why its new friend wasn't joining the rest of the herd.

Of course, while the two-legged was still in the fields, he could not simply stride out there, no matter how much he might like to. However, there might very well be something else he could do. Slinking down low in the grass, he tried to mimic the sound back, just to make it seem as though he was nothing to be concerned about. His was a little too shrill, and a bit too much of the 'oooo' than the 'mmm', but he seemed to have grasped the basics of the noise. The two-legged paused a moment, but kept going until it went into the confines of the brown hill-cave. He looked to his new friend as the creature made the same lowing noise again. He liked to think it was almost fond.

* * *

><p>Well, looks as though we might be hitting on a long-in-coming character arc for Dragon. I like to think he might not even really remember all that well why he's so fond of cows, but our female bovine friend might be the very first being in a long time whose been more than a means of play for Dragon.<p>

Hoping to be at least partly back in the swing of things,

Blackmoondragon1415


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